International Student Experience

Diverse perspectives. International Experiences.

Discover the unique stories and experiences of students from around the world who have made the College of Charleston their home.

Read our stories and catch a glimpse of our academic journeys, cultural backgrounds, personal growth and our amazing experiences at the College of Charleston.

Alina Galiyeva 

Hometown and country: Kokshetau, Kazakhstan
Languages spoken: Russian, Kazakh, English 
 
Major: Music (piano performance) 

What are you favorite College of Charleston classes so far?
Writing and acting classes are very fun!! 

At the moment, what is your career goal? 
Perform, play, sing, and create music. I want to do everything out of this and surround myself with art people.
  
Hobbies and Interests: I like taking some little musical videos. I like cooking sometimes and traveling to the new places. 

What College of Charleston clubs/organizations are you part of?
I have been a part of a pep-band, which is a band that plays during basketball games. But I want to join the Cofc Outdoors club. They do group hiking and little trips in South Carolina.  

What is your favorite thing to do at the College of Charleston on the weekends or after class?
My favorite thing to do in my free time is finishing everything that I did not finish out of the homework, but also going to the beach when it is summer, meeting my friends and going shopping together.  

Why did you choose College of Charleston? 
I think it is the biggest and main question we ask ourselves when graduating from school, and now it is the start of a new part of our life. Always extremely exciting and stressful, but remarkably interesting. I also experienced the same thing.

You want to dedicate your four years to a certain thing that you will enjoy doing. You will meet new people, new cultures, unfamiliar places. It sounds scary, but you must believe in yourself and choose the place your intuition will be comfortable with.

For me, Charleston was the most comfortable place: great weather, people from so many different states and countries, prettiest campus. I like cities like Charleston, not that big but historical and south. College of Charleston has one of the best opportunities out of scholarships, internships, and diversity of classes and professors. And it is a wonderful place to start when you are going to a different country. Before applying here, I did huge research about everything and decided that this place is best for me. I have been here already for almost 2 years and am still so grateful for everything that I have, for everything that I accomplished. 

Linh Bui

Hometown and country: Hai Phong, Vietnam 
Languages spoken: Vietnamese and English 
 

Major: Management Major and Psychology Minor

What are you favorite College of Charleston classes so far?
Abnormal Psychology and Lifespan Psychology. Both are very interesting classes!

At the moment, what is your career goal? 
I want to be Human Resource Manager 

Hobbies and interests:
I love going to the beach with my friends and shopping on King Street. I also like going to cute coffee shops to study with my suitemates and watching movies together.  

What College of Charleston clubs/organizations are you part of?
I’m in Psychology, Women in Business, and College of Charleston Founders Club  

What is your favorite thing to do at College of Charleston on the weekends or after class?
My favorite thing to do on the weekend in Charleston is going to the beach with my friends (especially at night!) and shopping.  

Why did you choose College of Charleston?
I chose to study at the College of Charleston for two reasons.

First, I think the location of the school is absolutely ideal. Charleston is such an amazing city! It’s a very walkable city, I can walk to wherever I want to, or take the bus (which it’s free!). Since I don’t have a car here, it’s very convenient for me. There are a lot of fun things in Charleston to do like shopping, going to the beaches, exploring fun spots downtown, or getting food at some amazing local restaurants. I know that I will never get bored here in Charleston.

Second, the midsize campus at CofC is just the right fit for me. I feel that CofC is big enough to meet new people and explore different interests, but it still feels like a close-knit community at the same time. I got to see familiar faces everywhere and there were always people saying hi to me on the way to class. From day one, CofC has been incredibly welcoming and making me feel right at home!